o Firewise was created for people who live
or vacation in fire prone areas of North America. ...You will find
online wildfire protection information designed to help you avoid unnecessary
fire loss. You will also find a list of offline wildfire protection information
as well as links to off-site fire resources. More: FireWise.

o Wildland fires are an important ecosystem process
throughout the western United States... ...To restore more normal fire
dynamics to a particular region, managers need to know how fire has historically
affected the local system, and how it functions today. More: Fire
Ecology Research.

o Thinning Project Shows Potential Management
Value; Impacts Reduced From McNally Fire. Objectives of this thinning
project were to thin overcrowded trees with a diameter of 20” or
less to preserve wildlife habitat and to open the forest canopy to reduce
the potential for a crown fire. More:
Sequoia National Forest.

River Notes for Sunday,
July 28, 2002

According to the press
release from the USFS Sequoia National Forest, Cannell Meadow Ranger District
Office in Porterville, released this morning at 9:00, the McNally Fire remains
30% contained and has burned 66,000 acres. A total of 2,278 personnel including
14 helicopters, 9 air tankers, 19 dozers, 23 water tenders, 125 fire engines,
54 handcrews, and 560 support personnel are fighting the fire. Estimated cost
to date is $9.1 million.

Sequoia National Monument is located within the
western flank of the fire, and at one time the fire advanced to within a mile
of the Packsaddle Giant
Sequoia grove This Area
Fire History Map shows the locations of the Giant Sequoia groves relative
to the fire as of July 26.

A public Forest Service meeting concerning the
fire will be held at Riverside Park in Kernville at 7 p.m. on Monday, July 29.
The McNally Fire started the same afternoon as the Deer
Fire, which burned 1800 acres in the Bodfish area and involved 40 structures,
10 of which were homes.

Here is a snapshot of today's flow and reservoir
data. Click on "Current"
to get the latest info. (SCE reports that flow phone data is updated twice daily.
For current information call 877-537-6356 or 760-376-8821.)

More information concerning flow and weather can be found on our LINKS
page.

S
T R E A M L I N E SNews & Info for Paddlers

o In response to last year's power crisis in California,
the Kings River Conservation District(KRCD) has revived plans from the
1980's which would build hydroelectric dams on the Upper Kings River
above Pine Flat Lake at Rodgers Crossing, and Dinkey Creek. More:
http://www.savethekings.org/
- FOR
- SacBee

o Running difficult whitewater is based on
personal decisions, and I hope it never becomes one regulated by “mother
hens”. With personal decisions come personal responsibility to have
the skills and experience necessary to make those decisions. When we make
a decision to paddle something we are not only exposing ourselves to risks,
but also those who will try to rescue us.. More: American
Whitewater

o The two major advantages of fishing from
a kayak are access to small or skinny water, and the ability to sneak
up on a fish. More: Stealth
Kayak Fishing.

River Notes for Monday,
July 15, 2002

Delonegha Boat Launch and River Access was officially
opened in a ribbon-cutting ceremony July 11th. The boat launch and river access
point is at the Highway 178 bridge near Delonegha Hot Springs on the Hobo
Campground to Democrat section of the Lower Kern,
upstream of Surprise Rapid. The access point is approximately 7 miles downstream
of the Hobo Rapid put-in and 4 miles upstream of the Democrat takeout. The day
use area is accessible from both the east and west sides of Highway 178. Funding
for the project was provided by the California Department of Boating and Waterways,
the Bureau of Land Management, the California Resources Agency, and the Forest
Service.

There's great water on the Lower
Kern today. According to Corp of Engineers flow data, the total outflow
from Isabella is about 1300 cfs, with about 775 cfs of that available at the
Slippery Rock put-in for the Dam Run, and all 1300 cfs in the river at the Sandy
Flat, Hobo/Miracle and Delonegha access points. The SCE flow phone reports a
flow of 1238 cfs below Democrat Dam, which implies only a fraction of the usual
amount of water is being diverted at Democrat.

Today's RiverPhoto was taken on the Lower Kern Below
Democrat Dam. It shows the river
immediately below Highway Rapid on the Richbar
Run. Highway Rapid is a big class III or III+ rapid around the corner and
a couple of rapids upstream of the Nude Beach take-out. The reach from below
Lucas Creek Falls to Nude Beach is more moderate than other sections of the
Kern Below Democrat. The most difficult rapids are roughly comparable in difficulty
to those on the class IV Miracle to Democrat run, but somewhat different in
character. Much of the run is class II and III.

Here is a snapshot of today's flow and reservoir
data. Click on "Current"
to get the latest info. (SCE reports that flow phone data is updated twice daily.
For current information call 877-537-6356 or 760-376-8821.)

More information concerning flow and weather can be found on our LINKS
page.

S
T R E A M L I N E SNews & Info for Paddlers

o To make a good decision about the future
of a dam in your community, numerous factors should be considered.
These factors can be grouped into seven categories: social, historical,
aesthetic, economic, legal and land use, engineering, and fish, wildlife,
and environmental factors. More:
Dam repair or Removal: A Decision-Making Guide.

o In response to last year's power crisis in California,
the Kings River Conservation District(KRCD) has revived plans from the
1980's which would build hydroelectric dams on the Upper Kings River
above Pine Flat Lake at Rodgers Crossing, and Dinkey Creek. More:
http://www.savethekings.org/
- FOR
- SacBee

River Notes for Monday,
July 8, 2002

Great news! The July 4th sale has been extended
through Sunday July 14th, 7pm. Get a great mid-summer deal on a whitewater or
recreational kayak! 10% off on all new boats. 15% off any boating accessories
purchased at the same time. This sale will absolutely end on the 14th, so don't
delay! Check out the boats, specs, and reduced prices in the New
Boat Barn.

Here is a snapshot of today's flow and reservoir
data. Click on "Current"
to get the latest info. (SCE reports that flow phone data is updated twice daily.
For current information call 877-537-6356 or 760-376-8821.)

More information concerning flow and weather can be found on our LINKS
page.

S
T R E A M L I N E SNews & Info for Paddlers

o What's Gale Norton trying to Hide? -
George W. Bush's Secretary of the Interior keeps a low profile, keeps
her mouth shut, and never picks a fight. Don't mistake her for a stiff,
though. As the steward of 507 million public acres, she has deftly combined
an aggressive, pro-extraction agenda and the Bush administration's wartime
clout to steamroll environmentalists. With the big battle over Arctic
oil drilling still to come, her fierce partisanship draws comparisons
to her onetime mentor, James Watt, but there's a crucial difference: Norton
knows how to win. More: Outside.

o Study: Warmer climate, sicker earth -
From coral reefs to rainforests, diseases are spreading among marine and
land animals  including humans  and global warming appears
to be a major factor, researchers reported Thursday in the journal Science.
More: MSNBC.

o For a kayak to be stable it should either
apply a force to push you back to the upright equilibrium condition, or
if you want to lean, it should apply force such that the boat finds a
new equilibrium condition before it tips you over. More :Kayak
Stability

River Notes for Saturday,
July 6, 2002

Our July 4th Kayak Sale continues today and tomorrow.
Take 10% off all new boats in stock. You can even take 10% off new boats that
were already on sale! Get that new boat you've been lusting over! To sweeten
the deal even more, take 15% off on all boating accessories purchased at the
same time! This is a great way to beat the heat on some hot new boats! Check
out the boats, specs, and reduced prices in the New
Boat Barn. Sale ends at 7:00 PM PDT, Sunday, July 7, 2002.

Here is a snapshot of today's flow and reservoir
data. Click on "Current"
to get the latest info. (SCE reports that flow phone data is updated twice daily.
For current information call 877-537-6356 or 760-376-8821.)

More information concerning flow and weather can be found on our LINKS
page.

S
T R E A M L I N E SNews & Info for Paddlers

o What's Gale Norton trying to Hide? -
George W. Bush's Secretary of the Interior keeps a low profile, keeps
her mouth shut, and never picks a fight. Don't mistake her for a stiff,
though. As the steward of 507 million public acres, she has deftly combined
an aggressive, pro-extraction agenda and the Bush administration's wartime
clout to steamroll environmentalists. With the big battle over Arctic
oil drilling still to come, her fierce partisanship draws comparisons
to her onetime mentor, James Watt, but there's a crucial difference: Norton
knows how to win. More: Outside.

o Study: Warmer climate, sicker earth -
From coral reefs to rainforests, diseases are spreading among marine and
land animals  including humans  and global warming appears
to be a major factor, researchers reported Thursday in the journal Science.
More: MSNBC.

o For a kayak to be stable it should either
apply a force to push you back to the upright equilibrium condition, or
if you want to lean, it should apply force such that the boat finds a
new equilibrium condition before it tips you over. More :Kayak
Stability

River Notes for Monday, July 1, 2002

Looks like the great paddling weather's going
to continue through the 4th of July, with a few clouds at times, and a slight
chance of afternoon or evening thundershowers at the higher elevations of the
Sierra.

The total outflow to the Lower Kern has been ranging from about 1000 cfs
to 1300 cfs. This afternoon the release to the river at Slippery Rock (the Dam
Run put-in) is about 536 cfs and below the Borel Powerhouse is about 1062 cfs.
The flow on the Upper Kern is hanging in there at about
550 - 650 cfs.

Here is a snapshot of today's flow and reservoir
data. Click on "Current"
to get the latest info. (SCE reports that flow phone data is updated twice daily.
For current information call 877-537-6356 or 760-376-8821.)